Photo of Mackenzie Dagrosa
It was a unique week with a hand full of the top track and field athletes off to places far away for a variety of national indoor meets this week, but it was still an exciting week of outdoor meet action. There are approximately four weeks until district meets begin and teams are starting to fall into place with relay legs getting solidified. The area has been fortunate this year to have a lot of excellent weather on meet days which has led to outstanding performances and hopefully that will continue.
The Best Thing I Saw
I wrote about the Canyon Cougar Relays on Sunday and it was a fun meet to be at. It is always fun for me because I know a lot of the coaches there and get to catch up with them before it is championship season. The best thing I saw this week was the head-to-head matchups between Randolph's Taylor Nunez and Brandeis' London Graham. They were in the same heat in the 100m and 200m and even matched up in the same leg of the 4x400m. Nunez came out on top in the individual events as she was able to hold off Graham in two close races. In the 4x400m, Graham received the baton about 0.7 ahead of Nunez and she was able to lengthen the lead by a few steps as she led the Broncos to victory in the event.
Back on the Track
In the last two weeks I have noticed a few top athletes returning to competition after finishing their basketball season or going through the football recruiting process. For the girls, the biggest names I have noticed are Fredericksburg's Taylor Grona and Rilyn Grona and Clark's Jade Perez all hitting the track after lengthy post-season basketball runs. For the boys, the two I have noticed are Michael Terry of Alamo Heights and Jordan Clay of Madison who have been getting recruited by every school imaginable in football.
Taylor and Rilyn Grona each appeared in a meet on February 8, but are now back for good after competing the past two weeks. At the Chap Relays this past week, Rilyn finished third in the 800m with a time of 2:22.26 and second in the 300mH with a time of 47.20. Two weeks ago, Taylor won the Marble Falls 800m in 2:23.30 and was second in the 400m (1:01.22). Perez, the District 28-6A cross country champion this year, had a solid first meet running 11:43.83 in the 3200m and 5:22.01 in the 1600m at the Mule Relays.
Terry has been in action the past two weeks for Alamo Heights. Last week, he won the 100m at the Mule Relays with a time of 11.05. Clay hit the track for the first time this year at the Sonny Detmer Relays and ran a hand-held time of 15.39 in the 110mH.
Brennan Bears
The Brennan boys track and field team is putting together a fantastic season and they have won each of the first six meets of the season. While winning regular season meets is nice, it does not always tell us how the team will stack up at the end of the year. The Bears have relied upon Zachary Miller in the distance races and some excellent relay teams to take the top trophy so far this year, but it will get tougher. Currently, Miller is ranked second in the Region in the 3200m and Javyn Dolton is ranked third in the triple jump. Their top relay team is the 4x200m squad that is #2 with a time of 1:27.83.
Names to Remember
Devine's Kylie Monreal and Pearsall's Curtis Saenz are two local athletes who might not get a lot of publicity but they are having strong seasons. Monreal, a freshman, had a huge performance this last weekend taking second in the Eagle Pass ISD Relays in the 300m hurdles with a great time of 47.36 and then she won the high jump with a clearance of 5-4. Both marks would put her in the top four in the Region in 4A. Saenz is a senior who also performed well at the Eagle Pass ISD Relays and ranks highly within the Region in a few events. He won both the 100m (10.92) and 200m (22.09) last week.
Indoor Championships
I don't usually update indoor events, but this week there were a good number of local athletes who traveled and did well at the Nike and New Balance Indoor National meets. At the Nike meet, Boerne Champion sophomore Elizabeth Leachman continued her assault on the record books. She won the 3200m in a meet record time of 9:44.16, just off her all-time outdoor record mark set earlier this year. Then, she won the 5K in a national record time of 15:28.90. Reagan senior Mackenzie Dagrosa won the title in the high jump with a personal best clearance of 5-10.5 and her sister, Isabella, advanced to the semifinals of the 60mH and had a weekend best time of 8.78. Sophia Bendet of Randolph ran a scorching time of 2:09.03 in the 800m and finished in third place. That time is faster than the current outdoor 800m San Antonio record. Finally, Churchill's Alejandro Rosales took part in the 800m and ran a solid time of 1:55.13 to finish in 13th place.
There were not any national champions at the New Balance meet, but four athletes did finish in the top-5. Reagan's Samuel Abati cleared 16-8.75 in the pole vault to finish in fifth place. Christopher Harris of Cornerstone Christian dropped a fast time of 47.81 in the 400m finals to take home fourth place. Harlan's Tate Taylor proved equally adept at both the 60m and 200m as he took fifth place in both with times of 6.75 and 21.06, respectively. Malik White of Taft grabbed fourth place in the 60mH by running 7.75 in the finals. Finally, Brennan's Clifton McBride ran the 60m in 6.97. There may have been other locals competing at the events, but I did not see their results.
School Records
In this section, I want to highlight the new school records that were set during the week. I need coaches to please let me know when you have a new record set. Either email me at shanemeling@gmail.com or message at me @ShaneMeling on X (Twitter).
Nick Hughes, Central Catholic, Discus, 152-9
London Graham, Brandeis, 200m, 23.69
Waylon McKenzie, O'Connor, Discus, 172-4
Nyima Williamson, Veterans Memorial, Long Jump, 19-8.5
Around the City
South San hosted their third meet of the season last Wednesday and all times were hand-held. The Sotomayor boys won the meet behind a strong performance from Elijah Hernandez and their hurdle crew. Hernandez won the 400m in 48.32, was second in the 200m in 21.28 and anchored the winning 4x400m team that won in 3:22.96. Jose Gonzalez, Amari Evans and Chris Carpenter went 1-2-3 in the 110mH for the Cats and Carpenter also took gold in the 300mH. Warren's Nick Ross won the 100m (10.50) and 200m (20.81) while Central Catholic's Nick Hughes took home the discus (152-9) and shot put titles.
The Medina Valley girls were also meet champions behind Kiyana Perez and Annabelle Jehl. Perez was second in the 100mH (15.28) and won the 300mH (46.94) while Jehl swept the throwing events with a toss of 33-2.75 in the shot put and 125-2 in the discus. Warren's Syenna Lara swapped positions with Perez in the hurdle events by winning the 100mH (14.83) and finishing second in the 300mH (47.25).
Cornerstone hosted a meet on Thursday that was won by the Laredo Alexander boys while the hosts finished in second place. Israel Cuellar of CCS won the 1600m (4:35.79) and was second in the 3200m (9:48.90) and the 400m (51.18). Great Hearts Northern Oaks' Joshua Cornelius became the first local to clear 6-6 in the high jump. Michael Estrada of San Antonio Patriots won the shot put (55-0) and discus (173-5) and remains near the top in both categories in the city. Darian Abbott of DDS ran a great 110mH and won in 14.79.
Emily Easton led the Cornerstone girls to a team title. She won the shot put with a throw of 38-4.5 and the discus with a mark of 112-2. Laura Sierra of St. Anthony's gave Easton some good competition with distances of 35-7 in the shot put and 111-5 in the discus. Chloe Nellis of Incarnate Word and Shylah Abbott of DDS embarked in a great race in the 300mH with Nellis winning in 46.74 while Abbott was right behind in 46.89.
At the Falls City Relays, Stockdale's Camden Derricoatte put on a show by winning four individual events; 110mH (14.79), 300mH (43.11), long jump (20-2.5) and triple jump (43-6). Falls City swept all three relays and ran a great time of 3:28.47 in the 4x400m. The discus proved to be the best event with Poth's Aiden Reed (161-10.5) and Larson Dziuk (161-6.5) and Marion's Michael Purcell (151-2.5) all throwing over 150-feet.
The Falls City girls also swept all three relays and they posted excellent times in the 4x100m (49.00), 4x200m (1:45.86) and 4x400m (4:09.63). Brooklyn Albert and Adisen Magill each won three individual events for Poth. Albert took gold in the 800m, 1600m and 3200m and Magill won the 100mH, 300mH and triple jump. Cayla Albers of Falls City threw the shot put 39-7.5 and the discus 124-2.
The Boerne boys won the Davenport Wolves Relays and they got a pair of wins from Barrett Crofut in the 800m and 1600m. McCoy Bruce won the 300mH in 40.46 and finished a strong second in the 110mH (15.79) to O'Connor's Jake Grullon who won in 15.10. The triple jump was the marquee event. Gianni Evans-Williams of Davenport won with a leap of 44-5 and Kahdyn Freeman of Pieper was second with a mark of 44-2. Gloria Deo's Kai Wallace was also great with a jump of 41-11. Waylon McKenzie continued his outstanding season for O'Connor with a win in the discus posting a throw of 172-4.
Canyon Lake won the Davenport girls meet thanks to a great all-around performance by Savanna Oberholtzer. She won the triple jump with a mark of 36-2.5 and finished second in the long jump (16-6), 100m (12.72) and as part of the 4x200m relay team. Pieper's Caroline Peterson cleared 5-8 in the high jump to knock off Kendall Lemm who cleared 5-6 for Boerne. Canyon Lake's Ayren Lightfoot won the 400m in 58.90 while Madisyn Jackson of O'Connor won the 300mH in 45.46.
The La Vernia boys won their home meet. La Vernia freshman Ty Carter won the long jump with a leap of 21-6. Pleasanton's Jayden Palacios won the 100m (10.91) and 300mH (40.45) and he ran the anchor leg on the winning 4x100m relay team that crossed in 42.73. Pleasanton's Preston Pilgrim cleared 15-0 in the pole vault and he currently ranks first in Region IV-4A.
The La Vernia girls matched their boys in winning their home meet. LV's Zoe Breitsprecher won the pole vault with a clearance of 11-3 while her teammate, Chloe McCloskey and Pleasanton's Layla Rodriguez each cleared 10-0. Alyssa Quinones of Floresville had a strong meet running the 800m in 2:28.36 and the 1600m in 5:26.38. Bandera's Kinlee Lawlis won the 100m in 12.37 and the 400m in 1:01.61.
Wagner and Alamo Heights tied for the boys title at the Alamo Heights Mule Relays while Boerne Champion was only three points behind. Wagner won the 4x100m in 42.19 and the 4x200m in 1:28.54. The 300mH featured a great race between Judson's Josiah Harris and Max Bacon of Alamo Heights. Harris won the race in 39.85 while Bacon was right behind in 40.11. In the long jump, both Clark's Christian Strickland and Judson's Michael Avery flew past 22-feet.
Harlan won the girls title with 124 points and Boerne Champion was second with 122.33 points. Harlan's Iyanna Webb and Nyima Williamson of Veterans Memorial were the two big winners. Webb won the 100mH (14.56) and 300mH (44.48) and was part of the winning 4x200m relay team that ran 1:42.63. Williamson jumped a huge 19-8.5 in the long jump and won the 200m (25.85) and 400m (59.56). Alamo Heights took the top two spots in the high jump with Sophia Zadel winning with a 5-4 clearance and Blakely Wogstad went 5-2.
The Madison boys won the 14th Sonny Detmer Relays hosted by Somerset and featuring hand-held times. Somerset won the 4x100m relay in 43.23 and the 4x200m relay in 1:30.41. Ja'ir Hampton won the 200m with a time of 21.70 while Taft's Ja'Dan Keiler took gold in the 300mH with a time of 40.13.
The Taft girls won thanks to a big performance by Brooklyn Crow. She won the 1600m in 5:20.10 and the 3200m 11:19.31. Madison's Mia Stewart won the long jump with a leap of 17-7.5 while MacArthur's Lily Abraham went 17-5. Isabela Shelfo of Taft took first in the 400m with a time of 1:00.34.
The Brennan boys won the Harlandale meet which was hand-held timing. The 4x100m relay was a fabulous race with the top three teams separated by .04 seconds. Steele won in 42.25 while Brennan was second and East Central was third. Steele's Deven Langston and Jonathan Hatton went 1-2 in the 100m. Langston finished in 10.37 while Hatton crossed in 10.46. Churchill's Ty Webb won the long jump with a season best performance of 23-2.
Brennan and Steele tied for the girls meet title at Harlandale. Caila Lyons won the 800m for Brennan in 2:14 and her teammate, Azaria Toney, won the 100m in 12.28. Brackenridge's Alasia Brown took first in the long jump with a leap of 18-3.5. Ta'Niyah Savala won the gold in the shot put for Steele with a toss of 36-1.5.
Clemens swept both titles at the SAISD Tapia Relays where the events were timed by hand. In the boys meet, Clemens won the 4x100m in 42.18 and the 4x200m in 1:28.77. Anthony Zapata of Southwest Legacy outdueled LEE's Arlo Gonzales in the 3200m as they both came through in 9:40. Jackson Jones of Clemens won the 110mH (14.72) and 300mh (40.44).
Victoria Arowosegbe of Clemens and Shyniece Davis of Jay each won two individual events. Arowosegbe won the 100m in 11.90 and the 200m in 25.30. Davis nabbed wins in the 400m (58.14) and long jump (16-9) while taking second in the 200m (25.40). Alicia Galvez of Southwest Legacy ran a great 800m winning in a time of 2:19.50. Medina crossed the tape in 2:19.65. Siara Hardeman of Highlands took gold in the shot put with a heave of 36-3.
Looking Forward
There are not many meets going on this week with most schools on Spring Break. I am planning to attend the NEISD Invitational on March 21 at Heroes Stadium.
Senior Signings
I would like to keep a running tally of all the track and field and cross country signings so please contact me if you notice someone is missing.
Ella Pickron, Smithson Valley, Colorado State
Erin Martin, Boerne Champion, West Texas A&M
Isabella Dagrosa, Reagan, Vanderbilt
Mackenzie Dagrosa, Reagan, Vanderbilt
Hayden Brace, Boerne Champion, USMA
Marcelo Parra, TMI, Princeton
Franco Parra, TMI, Princeton
Araceli Ford, O'Connor, UIW
Anthony Zapata, Southwest Legacy, UIW
Sam Abati, Reagan, Texas
Ann Claire Cop, Fredericksburg, Houston
Maddie Reagan, Davenport, TCU
Iyanna Webb, Harlan, Baylor
Hayden Scott, Brandeis, Texas
Joseph Lopez, Sotomayor, A&M-Corpus Christi
Ashley Stratton, Harlan, Angelo State
Jazmyn Singh, Smithson Valley, Princeton
Nathan Marcovitch, Johnson, Baldwin-Wallace
Talitha Brown, Clemens, Dallas Baptist
Alejandro Rosales, Churchill, UT-Tyler
Avery Brawner, Alamo Heights, Hofstra
Eli Perez, Floresville, Seattle University
Alyssa Quinones, Floresville, Abilene Christian
Cadence Patterson, Canyon Lake, Houston
Alma Lazo-Cazares, O'Connor, USMAPhoto of Mackenzie Dagrosa
It was a unique week with a hand full of the top track and field athletes off to places far away for a variety of national indoor meets this week, but it was still an exciting week of outdoor meet action. There are approximately four weeks until district meets begin and teams are starting to fall into place with relay legs getting solidified. The area has been fortunate this year to have a lot of excellent weather on meet days which has led to outstanding performances and hopefully that will continue.
The Best Thing I Saw